Opera-chair



(No Model.)

- 4 Sheets-Sheet 1. T. W. EATON.

OPERA CHAIR.

No. 329,292. Patented Oct. 27,1885.

4 Sheets-Sheet T. W. EATON.

OPERA CHAIR.

(No Model.)

No. 329,292. Patented 001;. 27, 1885.

k i W A ,3 V E G 0 c z w Evade?- T/wvu'w' EJ271507: zzzmi uft'iorngy (N0ModeL) 4 SheetsSheet- 3.

T. W. EATON.

OPERA CHAIR.

No. 329,292. Patented Oct. 27, 1885.

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UNITED STATES PATENT EFIcE.

TIIoMAs w. EATON, OF CHICAGO, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO JOHN F. EATON, orCAMBRIDGE, ILLINoIs.

OPERA-CHAIR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 329,292, dated October27, 1885.

Application filed December 27, 1883. Serial No. 115,746. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, THOMAS WV. EATON, of Chicago, in the county of Cookand State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Opera Chairs; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon,which form a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved construction inopera or other folding chairs; and it consists in the mattershereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

A principal feature of the invention con sists in the combination, witha spring or weight for throwing the seat of a pivoted chair into avertical position, of means for tempo rarily holding the seat inposition for use, so constructed that the application of a weight to theseat sufficiently heavy'to overcome the upward pressure of theseat-spring, as by a person sitting upon it, will cause the release ofsuch holding devices, and thereby permit the seat to rise upon theremoval of the weight therefrom.

Several different forms of holding devices operating in the manner abovestated are herein shown as illustrating my invention, all of whichembody the same general features of construction and comprise a movabledetent upon the chairseat, a projection upon the frame adapted forengagement with the detent, so as to hold the seat, when thelatter is inits horizontal position, from rising under the action of the spring orweight mentioned, the said detent and projection being so arranged thata further downward movement of the seat from the position in which thedetent and projection are engaged will carry the said detent out ofengagement with the projection, and means constructed to prevent theteengagement of the detent and projection after they have becomedisengaged, so that the seat, when released, will be free to rise, aswill hereinafter more fully appear.

A desirable form of device illustrating my invention is herein shown, inwhich a spring is applied to arrest the downward movement of thechair-seat at the time it reaches a position for the engagement of thedetent with the projection upon the chair-frame, said spring beingconstructed to yield upon the application of considerable additionalpressure to the chair-seat, so as to permit the seat to sink slightly,and to thereby cause a further move ment of the detent with reference tothe projection, suitable means being provided, in connection with thesedevices, as above set forth, for preventing the re-engagement of thedetent with the projection when the press ure upon the seat is released.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a central vertical section ofan opera-chair, illustrating one form of my invention, taken upon line00 x of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front or face view of the chair shown inFig. 1. Figs. 3 and 4 are detail perspective views of devices fortemporarily holding the chair in its horizontal position, which will behereinafter more particularly described. Fig. 5 is a vertical detailsection taken upon line on x of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is adetail verticalsection taken through the pivot of the chair-seat shown at the righthand in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a detail end view of the pivot-pin shown inFig. 6. Fig. 8 is a view illustrating another form of a device embodyingmy invention. Fig. 9 is a section taken upon line was of Fig. 8. Fig. 10is a detail view of another form of device, illustrating my invention.Fig. 11 is a fragmentary central vertical section of a chair,illustrating another form of my invention. Fig. 12 is a sectional viewof the same, taken upon line a; x of Fig. 11. Fig. 13 is a verticalcross-section, illustrating the form of the device shown in Fig. 10,taken upon the line 00 00 of said figure. Fig. 14 is a sectional view ofa chairseat, showing a weight applied to throw the seat upwardly.

A A are the side frames or standards of an opera-chair, generally of theusual construction. A is the back thereof, and B is the seat, which ispivotally connected with the said frame A, and is constructed to foldupwardly against the back A when not in use.

In the form of device illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 aspring, 0, is applied to a stationary part connected with the sideframe, A, and having attachment with the seat B in such manner as totend to throw the front edge of the said seat upwardly and backwardlyand to retain the seat in a vertical position. The said spring, asherein shown, and as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 6, is of spiral form,and is placed upon a cylinder, to which it is connected at one end bymeans of a lug, c, engaged with the hooked end 00f the spring, andhaving its opposite projecting end,O ,engaged with a stud, 1), upon oneof the side pieces, B, of the seat-frame, as illustrated in connectionwith the form of the device shown in Figs. 2 and 6, and also inconnection with other devices embodying my invention in Figs. 8, 9, 11,and 12. The cylinder 0 may be attached to the standard A outside of theseat, and

concentric with the pivotal point thereof; but

as herein shown said cylinder is located inside of the side piece, B, ofthe seat-frame, and is provided with a cylindrical extension, 0 whichpasses through a bearing, B, upon the side piece B, and is secured tothe standard A, forming one of the pivots of the seat. The cylinder 0and pivot-pin O are, as shown, attached to the standard A by means of abolt, O, passing axially through said cylinder and secured in the saidstandard. 7 In order to enable the strength of the spring 0 to beadjusted to throw the seat upward with greater or less force, asdesired, the end of the cylindrical extension 0 of the cylinder 0 isprovided with radial corrugations c fitted to corresponding corrugationsin a recess, a, in the standard A, whereby the lug c on the cylinder 0may be held at any angular position found necessary in adjusting theSpring.

The seat-frame, as illustrated in the figures above mentioned, isprovided with a pivoted detent, D, which is constructed to engage astationary cam-plate, E, connected with the side frame, A, and which isshown as being located upon the inner face of the side piece, B, of theseat, and connected with the said side frame by means of a cylindricalprojection, E, passing through a suitable bearing, B upon the said sidepiece B, so as toform the pivot upon which the seat turns. The detent Dis preferably pivoted upon the in= ner surface of the side piece, B, ofthe seat, audits free end is bent at right angles, so as to form aprojection, 01, for engagement with a notch, 6, upon the upper edge ofthe camplate E. The rear edge of the seat B is extended beyond thepivotal axis of the seat, and rests upwardly against a spring, 13*,(here in shown as being made of rubber,) which is inserted between thesaid seat and a stationary projection upon the chair-frame. Said springis constructed to arrest the motion of the seat, when thrown downwardly,at the point at which the detent D is in position to engage the notch 6,but to yield upon additional pressure,so as to permit a further movementof the detent with reference to the notch. The front/wall ofthe notch e,as indicated at e in Figs. 3 and 4, is curved upwardly and forwardly, sothat when the front edge of the chair is thrown downwardly from thepoint at whichthe said detent engages the notch said curved edge' E willcause the detent to rise out of the notch. The detent D may be ofsufficient weight to operate by gravity; or, if preferred, a spring, asshown at F, Fig. 1, may be applied to throw the saiddetent down wardlyand to retain its end d in engagement with the notch. Upon the innerface of the camplate E is pivoted a plate, G,which is provided with anotch, g, vertically above the pivotal point of the said plate G. Theupper edge of the plate G extends slightly above .the upper edge of thecam-plate E, as indicated at g, and said. plate G is provided with aweight, G, which tends, when the said plate is in a forward position, tothrow the notch 9 forward with reference to the notch e, and when swungbackwardlypast the pivotal point of the said plateG to throw the platein the other direction, or rearwardly. The plate G is also provided atthe rear end of the upper surface, 9, with an upward projection or stop,9 j

Whenthe parts are in the position illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, and thedetent Dis engaged with the notch 6, so as to prevent the upwardmovement of the outer end of the chair-seat, and also with the notch g,the weight G will be inposition forward of the pivotal point of theplate G, and will tend to throw said plate forward and the surface g beneath the end d of the said detent. If the outer end of the chair-seatis depressed by the yielding of the spring B, when the parts are in theposition described, the action of the curved surface E will cause thedetent to be lifted from engagement with the notch e, and the parts willtake the position illustrated in Fig. 4, the weight G causing the plateG to be rotated, so as to bring it-supper surface, beneath the end ofthe projection d, and thereby prevent the return of the detent toengagement with the notch. Upon the release of the seat, when in theposition last described, (shown in Fig. 4,) the seat will be pressedupward by the spring 0, and the detent, being held out of the notch e bythe plate G, willbe permitted to pass back over the upper edge of thecam-plate G, so that the seat may rise to a vertical position. Thepurpose of the projection upon the plate Gis to engage the end of thedetent, in order that the said plate may be thrown backwardly and thedetent caused to engage the notch e when the seat is again throwndownwardly. The pivot-pin E, which supports the side of the chair-seat,as above stated, is provided with a square projection, e, upon its end,as shown more clearly in Figs. 3 and 4, which projection enters acorresponding recess, a, in the side A of the chair-frame. Saidpivot-pin and the camplate E,attached thereto,ar'e held rigidly in placeby means of a bolt, E herein shown as being se-- piece A and through thepivot-pin and cylinder G, for supporting the spring 0 of the adjacentchair-seat, so as to take the place of the bolt 0*, above described, insupporting said cylinder and pivot-pin.

The cam-plate E, instead of being located upon the inner face of theside piece B of the seatframe, may, obviously, be placed outside of saidside piece, and be attached to or form a part of the side piece A, thedetent D in such case, of course, being attached to the side piece B,upon the outer surface thereof. The construction first described is,however, preferred, for the reason that the cam-plate and devicesconnected therewith are thereby concealed from view, and are not liableto be interfered with by the occupant of the chair.

In Figs. 8 and 9 another form of the device is shown embodying the sameprinciples of operation. In this case, however, the part containing thenotch for engaging the detent upon the chair-seat, and correspondingwith the stationary camplate E, above described, is movable, so thatupon the withdrawal of the detent from the notch with which it is engaged, by the application of additional pressure to the outer edge ofthe chair-seat, the said part containing the notch will be moved so asto prevent the return of the detent thereto, and thus permit the seat toreturn to its ven tical position.

As shown in Figs. Sand 9, the side piece A of the chair-frame isprovided upon its inner face (adjacent to the pivotal point of thechair-seat at one side thereof) with a semicircular ring or projection,A, preferably, but not necessarily, concentric with said pivotal point.Upon the face of the said standard, and below the seat-pivot, is placeda pivoted dog, H, with its free end extended rearwardly, and having insuch free end a notch, it, formed by means of a rearward]y-projectingpart, it, at the top of the dog. Upon the seat-frame, at the rear of thepivotal point thereof, and preferably upon a downwardly projecting arm,I, thereon, is pivoted a detent-arm, I, which projects forwardly, and isprovided upon its free end with a transverse projection or lug, i, whichextends laterally to a point near the surface of the standard A, andinto position to rest upon the annular projection A, so as to engage thenotch h in the dog H. The said dog H is constructed to swing freely uponits pivotal point, and normally rests at its free end upon theprojection A", said pr0 jection having a notch at a formed in its uppersurface, constructed to receive the lower part of the free end of thedog, and to permit the projection h upon the said free end of the dog torest upon the said projection A". The dog H may be made of sufficientwei ht to fall by gravity into the position described at a desired time;or, as shown, a spring, J, may be provided for throwing said dogdownwardly, said spring, if present, being preferably formed of a leafattached atj to the rear portion of the semicircular projection A andhaving its free end curved upwardly, so as to allow the detentprojection to pass from beneath the same without noise, as will behereinafter better understood. The chair-seat is in this constructionthrown upwardly in a vertical position by means of a spring, 0, placedupon a cylinder, O, both similar to the corresponding parts first abovedescribed. Said spring and cylinder maybe placed at either side of theseat. As shown in the figures mentioned, however, the spring andsupporting-cylinder therefor are placed at the side of the seat adjacentto the devices described, for holding the seat temporarily in ahorizontal position.

In Figs. 8 and 9 of the drawings the parts of the device last describedare shown in the position which they take when the seat is temporarilyheld horizontal, the lugi upon the detent I being engaged with the notchit upon the dog I1, and the said projection or lug i resting upon theupper surface ofthe semi circular projection A, upon which surface ittravels when the chair-seat is rotated. The parts being in the positiondescribed, it is obvious that when an additional weight or pressure isput upon the outer edge of the chair-seat the spring B, between the rearedge of the seat and the chairframe above it, will yield and will permitthe lug t to recede beyond the rear of the projection h. The dog H willthen fall, and the point h thereof will rest upon the face of theannular projection A The parts will remain in the position last stateduntil the pressure is removed from the seat. When such pressure isremoved, as by the rising of the occupant, the seat, by the action ofthe spring 0, is raised, the lug t, in this movement of the seat,passing over the projection h and dog H and beneaththe spring J. Afterpassing the dog H the lug 1; falls to the upper surface of theprojection A, and slides thereon until the chair has reached itsvertical position. \Vhenit is again desired to place the seat in ahorizontal position, a downward movement thereof will carry thedetent-lugi backwardly upon the surface of the projection A", andbeneath the dog H, so as to lift said dog until it reaches the notch htherein, which it will engage, as before described. The spring B is solocated and is of such strength that it will naturally arrest thedescending movement of the ehairseat at the moment the lugt engages thenotch 11, considerable additional pressure being required to furthercompress said spring suffieiently to carry said lug beyond the dog. Thespring J is preferably extended forwardly from its point of contact withthe upper sur face of the lug, and its end portion,j, is inclinedupwardly from said surface, as before mentioned, so that when the lug t'passes from beneath the spring the upturned portion thereof will restupon the lug and permit the return of the spring to contact with the dogwithout the noise or click which might otherwise occur at such time.

In Figs. 10 and 13 still another equivalent form of device embodying thesame general features of construction before described is illustrated.The chair-seat B may in this case be thrown upwardly by a spring orweight applied in any desired or preferred manner; but, as shown in saidfigure, a spring, (3, constructed and operating in a manner previouslydescribed, is used for this purpose. Upon the rear edge of thechair-seat is placed a stationary lug or projection, K, formed, asshown, upon the bearing block B of the chair-seat, and constructed toengage a projection, Z, upon a swinging arm or plate, L, which ispivotally connected with the side piece A of the cha r-frame at the rearof the said projection. The plate L is arranged in a vertical positionat some distance below the rear edge of the seat, when the latter ishorizontal, and the upper end of said plate is constructed to swingfreely, and is held normally in position to engage the lug K by means ofa spring, L, which may be of any desired construction, but which, asherein shown, is similar to the spring 0, previously described, and islocated at the pivotal point Z of the plate. The forward motion of theupper and free end of the plate L is preferably limited by means of astop, Z upon the standard A. The projection Z is located near the upperend-of the plate L, and its lower surface is inclined in such a mannerthat when the free edge of the chair-seat is thrown downwardly the lugK, operating upon said inclined surface, will throw the plate Lbackwardly and permit the automatic engagement of the said lug with thesaid projection Z, so as to hold the chair-seat in its horizontalposition. Upon the upper end of the plate Lisa pivoted dog, M, arrangedin a generally horizontal position, and pivoted at its rearend, by meansof a pivot-pin, m, to the plate L. The dog M is supported in ahorizontal position by a stop, Z upon the plate L, and when it is in itsnormal position its forward or free end extends beyond the front edge ofthe plate L and the projection Z thereon. By this construction,when thelug K is carried upwardly along the lower inclined surface of theprojection Z in lowering the seat, the upper edge of the said lug K willengage and lift the free end of the said dog, and support the latter inits raised position during the time that the'said dog is engaged withthe projection Z, at which time the parts will bein the positionillustrated in Fig. 10,and the seat will be held temporarily in itshorizontal position. If, when the parts are in the position abovementioned, an additional movement of the seat takes place by the application of an increased pressure thereto,and the consequent yieldingof the spring B the lug K will move upwardly and throw the free 7 end ofthe dog M upwardly with it until the forward and upward movement of thesaid lug K brings its end beyond the free end of the said dog, when thelatter will drop and its end face will engage the said lug K. If, now,the front edge of the seat is released by the removal of pressuretherefrom, the lug K will swing downwardly and carry the free end of thedog M downwardly with it until the motion of said dog is arrested by thestop Z This movement of the lug and the dog M will obviously throw theupper end of the plate L backwardly into the position indicated bydotted lines in Fig. 10, and will thereby cause the release of the lug Kfrom the projection Z, so that said lug will be free to pass downwardlyover said projection,and thus permit the seat to rise under the actionof the spring. The dog M is preferably, as shown, provided. with aprojection, m, at its upper and free end, so that when the said free endof the dog drops into engagement with the lug K, in the manner abovedescribed,its downward motion will be arrested by the contact of thesaid projection m with the lug K, and it will remain properlyinengagement with said lug until the dog has reached its horizontalposition and the lug is disengaged therefrom.

Another equivalent construction to those already described isillustrated in Figs. 11 and 12, in which the release of the detent uponthe seat from the projection or dog upon the chair-frame is accomplishedby a movement of the cushion or part of the cushion instead of by afurther movement of the entire seat-frame, as in the form of the devicehereinbefore described, and shown in Figs. 8 and 9. In this case theseat-frame is constructed to rest at its rear edge'against a stationarycross piece or stop, A upon the chair-frame, no provision being made forsupplemental movement thereof, and the part 1, carrying the detent I, isnecessarily an arm, and is pivoted to a horizontal shaft, P, upon thechair-seat. The shaft 1? rotates in bearings 19 upon the rear lower edgeof the chair-seat, said bearings being, as herein illustrated, made uponthe cast- 1 ing B forming the bearing-box of the seat. At the middle ofthe shaft P, as shown more clearly in Fig. 12, is rigidly secured aforwardly-extending arm,- 19', which is engaged at its forward and freeend with a lug, 10, secured at or near the middle of a board, B, whichforms the foundation of the cushion of the seat, and which is madeseparate from and vertically movable with relation to the seatframe. Theboard B and the free end of the arm P may be held at the upper limit oftheirv movement by any suitable spring applied between such parts andthe said frame in any desired manner. As herein shown, however, asemi-elliptical spring, R, is employed, and secured by means of staplesr at either end to the side pieces, B, of the seat-frame, and attachedat its middle to the board B. A stop or ledge, b, is preferably securedto the inner surface of the seat-frame, in order to limit the downw M mr ward movement of the movable board, and l the spring R is so arrangedas to hold said board slightly above the said ledge Z), in order thatupon the weight of a person coming upon the seat the cushion may bedepressed until it rests upon the said ledge. The arm P being connectedwith the board B" of the cushion in a manner described, this depressionof said cushion will cause the shaft P to be rotatedand the arm I to bethrown backwardly, thus carrying the detent I to the rear and releasingits free end from engagement with the notch h, in the same manner thatthe detent is re leased from the dog H by the backward movementoccasioned by the rotation of the entire seat-frame, as described inconnection wit-h the device shown in Figs. 8 and 9. The spring fortemporarily retaining the detent upon the seat in engagement with theprojection or notch upon the chair-frame, or part connected there with,may in the device last described, and also in those before mentioned, beinserted between the movable part and a stationary part of the seat orchair frame at any desired place.

In Fig. 14 of the drawings a weight, Q, is shown as attached to the rearedge of the seat B, said weight serving, instead of the spring 0, (shownin the figures previously described,) to throw the seat upwardly whenthe latter is released.

In another application, Serial No. 146,741, for patent, filed by meOctober 29, 1884, is shown and described another way of carrying outtheinvention herein broadly claimed. The mechanism shown andspecifically claimed in said application embodies, however, the samegeneral features of construction and operation as are present in thedevices herein shown and above set forth, and said mechanism istherefore covered by the broad claims hereto appended.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination, with the chair-frame andpivoted seat, of a spring or weight applied to throw the seat upwardly,and mechanism for holding the seat in a horizontal po sition against theaction of the said spring, comprisinga projection and a detent upon theseat and frame located in position for mutual engagement when the seatis horizontal, said projection and detent being relatively movable topermit their engagement with each other in the downward movement of theseat, a spring or its equivalent applied to hold the said projection anddetent normally in position for engagement, and means constructed tomove and hold the detent out of engagement with the projection when thesaid detent and projection are relatively moved by a downward movementof the seat from its horizontal position, whereby the seat will be freeto rise when the pressure thereon is removed, substantially asdescribed.

2. The combination, with the chair-frame and pivoted seat, of a springor weight applied to throw the seat upwardly, mechanism for holding theseat in a horizontal position against the act-i011 of the said spring,comprising a detent and a projection upon the seat and frame located inposition for mutual engagement when the seat is approximatelyhorizontal, said projection and detent being relatively movable topermit their engage ment and disengagement with each other, a spring orits equivalent applied to hold the said detent and projection normallyin position for engagement, and means constructed to move and hold thedetent out of engagement with the projection when the said detent andprojection are relatively moved by a downward movement of the chair-seatfrom its horizontal position, and a spring interposed between the seatand a part of the frame, constructed to arrest the downward movement ofthe seat in position for engagement of the detent and projection, and toyield when additional downward pressure is applied to the seat,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination, with the chair-frame and pivoted seat and a springor weight applied to throw the seat upwardly, of a notched plate uponthe frame and a spring-actuated detent upon the seat, the said detentbeing located in position to engage the notch of the plate when the seatis approximately horizontal, and a movable part, as G, upon the saidplate, located in position to engage the detent when the said detent hasbeen carried out of the notch by a downward movement of its seat fromits approXimately-horizontal position, and a spring or weight applied tothrow said movable part G into position to engage said detent,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS V. EATON.

\Vitnesses:

(J. CLARENCE PooLn, PETER J. ELLERT.

